1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an improved radio frequency identification reader. Specifically, the present invention relates to a computer implemented method, an apparatus, and a computer program product for testing a radio frequency identification reader.
2. Description of the Related Art
Radio frequency identification (RFID) systems are widely used in industry to automatically identify a product, animal, or person. RFID systems typically include a detector or reader, and a number of transponders or tags. Presently, RFID systems do not include a mechanism to self-test, or to perform a complete self-diagnosis. Current methods exist to determine whether an RFID reader can identify multiple transponders, or tags that are in close proximity to each other. However, no easy method of performing a self-test, or performing a self-diagnostic exists.
Current methods for testing the operability of a RFID reader require the use of an external device. As a result, in order to determine whether the RFID reader is functioning correctly, users are required to purchase several devices and then connect them together. Furthermore, users must store and locate the testing device each time a diagnosis is to be performed on the RFID system. Consequently, users frequently fail to perform any diagnostics on the RFID readers, which ultimately results in undetected and un-repaired failures for unacceptably long periods of time.